I think even if Tom had lied to Stoddard about the shooting to ease Stoddard's conscience, it would strike me as more profound. These westerns are memory films, filled with the traditions of the past, created from the anecdotes, fables, and songs that sprang from American history. By the end of Liberty Valance, it was more than obvious that Ford and Wayne had come to the end of their long association, which started when Ford cast Wayne as an Odysseus like courageous hero in his western odysseyStagecoach. All that said, its a bit of an odd film for Wayne, who got top billing but has one of the least interesting characters. Ford bitterly laments the intrusion of reality on his legend. You aint exactly the type., Liberty Valance: You lookin for trouble, Doniphon? (Doodie) Tennison, 18, of Texarkana, Texas. When Doniphan and Valance prepare to have a shootout over who will pick up the food, Stoddard intervenes, humbles himself, and picks up the food. I was praying that it wouldn't be revealed later that Tom (John Wayne) assisted him. While Howard Hawks westerns emphasized professionalism and comradeship among the settlers of the old west, and Anthony Manns westerns shed light on the dark side of this civilization: greed, vengeance and violence; the westerns that John Ford made were not just simple genre pictures, they were about the building of the American nation. His world is diffused by time, by memory and nostalgia, by folklore and myth. Supposedly he likes Stoddard and doesnt want to see him killed, but what prevents him from announcing his presence before hand, or even after? Doniphan takes it for granted that Hallie will be his wife and resents it when she stars having feelings for Stoddard. But in Liberty Valance (as well as in his previous filmSergeant Rutledge) I find a strong influence of Kurosawas Rashomon; especially, dealing with the exploration of a particular event (involving a crime) from multiple vantage points. Its not just a matter of printing the legend: it really makes no difference. This is fascism against democracy: the tyranny of the strongman over the ordinary people. He was the one man who would face Liberty Valance come what may. Losing the woman he loved to Ransom haunted Tom for the rest of his life and he was never able to move on from it and find love again with anyone else. So the newspapermen are all surprised, as to why Ranse Stoddard: three-term governor, two-term senator, ambassador to the Court of St. James, would attend his funeral. In another film I might even think this ambiguous element was more important. Though the audience tends to identify with Doniphon's individualism and to feel instinctively a desire to preserve the simplicity of the old West, the social change brought about by the railroad and the need for staehood slowly make the Doniphons and Valances obsolete. The territory is granted statehood and, being the man who shot Liberty Valance, Stoddard became its first governor. Though we still see Stoddard shoot in the direction of Valance simultaneously, almost making the true killer ambiguous. Valance and his gang beat up a drunken Peabody nearly to death, and ransack his office. Besides, there is a complication. Stoddard and Hallie then sit in silence as the politician reflects on the life he built on a myth and John Wayne's Doniphon sacrificing his own happiness for him and Hallie. Vera Miles Hallie Stoddard In a long flashback involving most of the film, Ford recalls the events leading up to that day. He finds out real soon while traveling to the town of Shinbone that the West doesn't really care about law or . The story sees James Stewart's idealistic younger lawyer Stoddard arriving in a remote town with the intention of introducing law, order and education to the townspeople. Subscribe to our email newsletter. Stoddard is saved by Doniphon, a local farmer and horse trader, who observes: Liberty Valances the toughest man south of the Picketwirenext to me. Stoddard is nursed back to health by Hallie (Vera Miles). Doniphan is ready to kill Valance over spoiling his steak by tripping Stoddard, but does nothing while Valance oppresses his neighbors, and torments innocent people. But what if Doniphon is lying, what if Stoddard really is the man who shot Liberty Valance? His sympathy for the townspeople is real, but not enough to motivate him to take action on their behalf. When the fact becomes legend, print the legend," Ford's films show the legend. In a final act of self-negation, he tells Stoddard the truth, absolving him of the act of killing (to which Stoddard had remained steadfastly opposed throughout his ordeal in the West), and taking the sin on himself to suffer alone. But he was frustrated with his costars leisurely pace,; he was a guy who moved fast , talked fast and worked fast. He quickly makes an enemy out of local bully and killer Liberty Valance (Lee Marvin, The Dirty Dozen), who tries to force him to leave town. Stewart turns in another winning performance. The story sees James Stewart's idealistic younger lawyer Stoddard arriving in a remote town with the intention of introducing law, order and education to the townspeople. Ford reveals Stoddard as incapable of adjusting to the life of the West: when Tom brings Hallie a "cactus rose," Stoddard, having seen real roses, cannot appreciate the beauty of the desert flower. 3 Stagecoach (1939) Stream now on Prime Video, Max, Roku, Tubi, and DirecTV ; In the 1930s, Wayne mostly worked as an extra or had small roles in films. It asks the question: Does a man need to carry a gun in order to disagree or state an opinion? The story focuses on Ransome Stoddard (Jimmy Stewart), an American senator arriving at the town of Shinbone with his wife, Hailey (Vera Miles), to attend the funeral of Tom Doniphon (Wayne). So Ford had to go back to his favorite son to get this picture made, and he didnt like it at all and neither did Wayne. When he walks into a bar to fetch Tom, the bartender won't serve him, and Tom slams hard on the bar: "Give him a drink." He has written words for Den of Geek, Collider, The Irish Times and Screen Rant over the years, and can discuss anything from the MCU - where Hawkeye is clearly the best character - to the most obscure cult b-movie gem, and his hot takes often require heat resistant gloves to handle. While many people have imagined Stoddard as naively unaware that the law wouldnt be sufficient to deal with Liberty Valance, Stoddard was no fool. Stoddard was the only man in town who would stand up to Valance and if Valance wasnt stopped, hed continued to destroy and hurt people. Stoddard becomes disgusted and leaves, but Doniphon stops him and reveals that it was he who actually shot Liberty Valance. At the time of the films release, it was dismissed as a minor work from a master filmmaker, but watching it now , it shows his extraordinary growth as a filmmaker, which is not just restricted to its thematic resonance, but also extends to its visual and narrative stylistics. When Peabody and Stoddard are elected as the delegates, Valance promises vengeance. Hallie attends to Stoddards wounds and it appears to Doniphonthat she has fallen in love with Stoddard. This is also the last western he would make with his most favorite actor John Wayne, with whom he did close to 14 films. (One stylistic touch: In this film, he habitually calls Stoddard "Pilgrim," which expresses an insight into the lawyer's character.). It is made clear in "Liberty Valance" that segregation was the practice in the territory. I really enjoyed it but felt somewhat cheated by the 'twist' ending. With that one line of dialogue, John Ford pretty much dismantles the entire mythology of the American west that he had created over a course of 40 years. And Doniphon returns home and burns down the room he was building for the day he and Hallie would marry. When he died in 1961, Corriere della Sera wrote: "Perhaps with him there has ended a certain America: that of the frontier and of innocence" Photograph: SNAP/Rex Features John Wayne His first. Recognizing that that kind of cowardice is his own and not Stoddards, he gives him a pep talk and tells him what he wants to hear: that he did not violate his belief in non-violence, that he is the man he always thought he was. Marvin enjoyed playing the larger-than-life Liberty Valance, which he did to the hilt, opposite iconic costars like Wayne and Stewart. His chief victim was Woody Strode, with whom he very nearly came to blows. Because he had murdered Valance, rather than shooting him in self-defence, Doniphon had to conceal his role, lest he be prosecuted. Liberty Valance cannot abide anyone standing up to him, and the shingle is an affront. In fact, hes severely whipped by Valance after a stage holdup. After hearing all this, the newsmen decide not to print the story, as the mythology that propelled Stoddard has to be protected at any cost. Stoddard demands that Doniphon's boots and spurs and gunbelt be returned to his corpse. Padraig has been writing about film online since 2012, when a friend asked if he'd like to contribute the occasional review or feature to their site. So why then does he shoot Liberty Valance? But today I saw it and came away with a different conclusion. Create a free website or blog at WordPress.com. Hes even elected as a delegate to the territorial convention but refuses to serve. Pompey had thrown Tom a rifle and at the exact moment of Valance's fourth and potentially-fatal shot, Doniphon killed Valance from a side angle, without anyone knowing at the moment of the blast. The story takes place in a fictitious town ofShinbonein an unnamed Western territory (probably Colorado). Four Earn 2023 Harvard Medals for Distinguished Service to the University, As Gay Ascends to Presidency, 61 Percent of Surveyed Faculty Say Theyre Satisfied With Her Election, Harvard School of Public Health Launches Mindfulness Center Through $25M Gift, Ex-Harvard Chemist Charles Lieber Spared Additional Prison Time, Will Serve 6 Months House Arrest, Hundreds of Harvard Affiliates Sign Open Letter for Increased Access to Mental Well-Being Support at HKS. The film, also starring James Stewart, Lee Marvin and Vera Miles, is Fords most political film that subverts a lot of myths about the American West as well as the John Wayne persona that Ford himself created, This is the West, sir. The flashback itself was absurdly unrealistic, with Tom being casually tossed a rifle and firing at the last moment. The other could easily bring order, but doesnt because hes so busy taking care of number one and his crowning heroic moment is shooting down a distracted man in the city streets. There's a lot in the film if we care to notice. Ford takes us into the past, to Shinbone before the coming of the railroad modernized the town. And so begins the political career for the lawyer from back East. Whatever the reasons, the end result is that the studios refused to finance Liberty Valance, if Wayne was not in the cast. Legend is that Ford wanted younger actors for his film, and didnt want to use John Wayne. Tom Doniphon: You aim to help me find some?, Strother Martin as Floyd, a sidekick to Liberty Valance in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962), Lee Van Cleef as Reese, one of Liberty Valances sidekicks in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962), Mr. Scott, to Ransom Stoddard: This is the West, sir. But Liberty Valance and his guns work for the cattle barons who want to keep the territory for themselves. [Doniphon kicks Floyd in the face as he bends down to retrieve the tray] Beginning with "Stagecoach" (1939), continuing from 1948 through 1950 with the Cavalry Trilogy ("Fort Apache," "She Wore a Yellow Ribbon" and "Rio Grande"), and finally to 1962 and "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance," together in 10 features they largely formed the templates of the Hollywood Western. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance is Ford's deeply personal farewell to a period in American history he loved, a folklore he helped create. In fact, they find themselves up for election as territorial delegates to work toward that goal. Liberty Valance : Three against one, Doniphon. When Stoddard found the town marshal was a coward, he began to take an old gun out and practice. Of these "Liberty Valance" was the most pensive and thoughtful. Now Stoddard accepts Valances challenge (ignoring Doniphons advice to leave town) to shoot it out with him. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valancefinds Wayne playing a local man named Tom Doniphon in a small Western town. He is the author. This famous aphorism (One of the most famous lines in Movie history) is spoken by the character of a newspaperman in Fords 1962 western,The Man who shot Liberty Valance. TakeFort Apache (1948) for instance, which is a strong polemic on American military intervention against the Native Americans. Scan this QR code to download the app now. ", Also online in my Great Movies Collection: John Ford's "The Grapes of Wrath," "Stagecoach," "The Searchers," "Rio Bravo" and "My Darling Clementine," and John Wayne in Howard Hawk's "Red River.". (LogOut/ We watch events of long-ago happen before our eyes, and are content to take a temporary departure from the Twentieth Century. First from the subjective perspective of Stoddard, and then an objective version, depicting the fact; that it was Doniphon who killed Valance, and not Stoddard. This will be very true for Liberty Valance; everyone except Wayne not only had the best scenes, but Ford made sure they all give the most flamboyant, over the top performances of their careers, to contrast with the sour and dour Wayne, who represented the truth and moral core of the film. Stoddard is recovered by Tom Doniphon (Wayne), a rancher, and taken to the local eating establishment, the home of Hallie and her Swedish parents, Peter and Nora Ericson. Stoddard believes so firmly in the law that he is willing to lose his life for his principles. When someone tried to comfort him that Doniphon was full of ambiguity and his mindset may help his performance, Wayne snapped back, Screw ambiguity I dont like ambiguity. But he is a sort of reluctant hero, who minds his own business, and is roused into action only if his path crosses with the outlaws. Out of either James Stewart or John Wayne, who was The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance and how does this alter the ending? True Grit: How The 2010 Movie Compares To The Book & John Wayne Version, The Barbarian And The Geisha Had John Wayne Literally Fighting His Director. Doniphon returns drunken to his place where he torches it and would be content to die if Pompy did not rescue him from the burning house. As is the question of who really killed Liberty Valance. This twist does little to impress the editor, who refuses to run the story revealing the truth, proclaiming When the legend becomes fact, print the legend. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance ends with Stoddard and Hallie - who also knows the truth about Doniphon - on a train ride home. Doniphan, while still doing dishwashing work, hangs up his shingle at a local newspaper, and begins teach people to read, and about their country. Funeral of Tom Doniphon taken from the classic The Man Who hot Liberty Valance Meanwhile, throughout the film, Tom has not 'done the right thing' and stood up to Liberty Valance except in circumstances where he felt he had to. Sure, he talks a big game, and he certainly has a certain degree of martial prowess, but he refuses to put it to use, perhaps for fear of failure. He faced Valance, who immediately shot him in his gun hand. The screenplay by James Warner Bellah and Willis Goldbeck contains one of the best-known lines of dialogue in any Ford movie, spoken to Stoddard years later by the town's new newspaper editor: "This is the West, sir. James Stewart is Ransom Stoddard, an idealistic young lawyer who heads West and quickly runs afoul of an outlaw named Liberty Valance (Lee Marvin). Even the impact of this noble deed is lessened by Doniphan indulging himself in bitterness and self-pity. Everyone similarly assumes he and Hallie will get married, but he never asks her. Miraculously, Stoddard kills Valance, wins Hallie (Tom's former girl), and goes to the political convention. The next bullet, he says, will be right between the eyes; but Stoddard fires first, and to everyones surprise, Valance falls dead. It was like Gary Cooper inHigh Noonexcept Stoddard wasnt Gary Cooper with the gun. Ford started the film full of enthusiasm and fire, but he lost interest in the film almost as soon as shooting began. The legend of how Stoddard stood up to Valance and killed him spread wide and helped him build a career in politics. Years ago Shinbone was held in a grip of terror by the sadistic Liberty Valance (played by Lee Marvin in a performance evoking savage cruelty). So, when Stoddard and Valance face off, Doniphan fires the shot that kills Liberty Valance from across the street, thus losing the girl he loves to give her what she wants. In a film with Lee Marvin's snarl, Andy Devine's squeaky voice and the accent of the Swedes, John Wayne as usual provides the calm center, never trying for an effect. His mood made life difficult for all the actors involved but he was especially tough on Wayne, who found himself in the direct firing line again. Edmond OBrien Dutton Peabody Thirty years ago the swaggering, tough-talking leader of the Gambino crime family was found guilty of murder and racketeering after eluding prosecutors at three previous high-profile trials. Look instead at a debate that continues between the lawyer and the farmer about guns. When Stoddard nominate Doniphan for delegate, he refuses the post which would bring him into conflict with Valance. John Carradine Maj. Cassius Starbuckle But the fact is that Wayne is really good as Tom Doniphon; Both he and Stewart, who were 54 and 53 respectability, were too old for the parts, but the film could not have been made without them. He had many murders on his conscience, and much enjoyed using a leather bullwhip. [sic Arkansas] For two years police of two states have been unable to solve five slaying at the state-line city. Hallie, once Tom's girl, has fallen in love with Stoddard, and in sparing him, Doniphon loses her. Does this make sense? Ransom Stoddard, a young Eastern lawyer traveling West on Horace Greeley's advice, is in the stagecoach held up just outside of Shinbone by Liberty Valance (Lee Marvin), "the toughest man south of the Picket Wire." But he hasnt. This is all to be seen: The role of a free press, the function of a town meeting, the debate about statehood, the civilizing influence of education. Liberty Valance: Three against one, Doniphon. Shinbone is the only Western town I've seen in a movie with no prostitutes. No problem: It became a hit anyway. He is Tom's farmhand and seems to be his only confidant, a protective presence; he always has Tom's back. Ransom: Thats why I painted it. One that almost seemed forced upon the story. Once in the town of Shinbone, he finds allies in the form of tough Tom Doniphon (John Wayne) and his fiance, Hallie (Vera Miles). There was nothing more for Ford to do with Wayne, at least in the western genre. Next: The Barbarian And The Geisha Had John Wayne Literally Fighting His Director. Trying to defend a woman passenger, Stoddard is beaten by Valance, left for dead, and brought to town by Tom Doniphon. Learn how your comment data is processed. Ford would make one more Western (without Wayne),Cheyenne Autumn (1964),the penultimate movie of his career which told the story of the Old-west from the perspective of the Native Americans. "At the heart of the Western", argues John Lenihan, was always His mental downfall afterwards still makes sense if he didn't secretly shoot Valance.